


guess i'll be sticking with you

by forestjoshua



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Canon Compliant, Found Family, M/M, Pining Steve, Post-Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Slow Burn, Steve centric, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, bearded steve? bearded steve., except for the part where pepper and tony get back together, ish, it breaks my heart to separate pepperony but oh well...., let's ignore infinity war looming ahead of us, shuri is smarter than tony stark like it's canon...., side wanda/vision i guess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-08
Updated: 2018-03-08
Packaged: 2019-03-28 17:32:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,402
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13908852
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/forestjoshua/pseuds/forestjoshua
Summary: He’s going to fix what is broken ‒  that what can be fixed. He’s going to paint over the cracks, start a new page.First, he’s going to help out his team. Then, he’s going to hide somewhere and build up the courage to face Tony ‒ hopefully by the time his phone stops being mute. And if that happened, he’d run ‒ he’d run to Tony.When the dust settles, Steve can't stay in Wakanda. His mind is filled with thoughts of Tony. He's hoping to fix it all, but it may take time.





	guess i'll be sticking with you

After watching the sunset in Wakanda, Steve ponders for a moment. Then, he requests to see T’Challa. The prince ‒ the _king ‒_ has been busy for the past few days, dealing with the aftermath of everything, as well as preparing for his new duties as the ruler of his country.

Not that T’Challa wouldn’t have been busy either way. But he does afford a sliver of time for Steve.

“What can I do for you, Captain Rogers?” he asks, eyes soft and kind, smile welcoming, as Steve enters the room. T’Challa is sitting at the table, holograms glittering behind him. He had been working, and Steve feels bad for taking the future king’s time.

He pushes the thoughts away and clears his throat, “Just Steve, Your Highness,” he corrects softly, “I don’t believe Captain Rogers exists anymore.”

“Then you might as well call me T’Challa,” T’Challa answers, gesturing Steve to take a seat next to him. “Now, tell me, what’s on your mind?”

“Well, Your H- T’Challa, I think it’s my time to leave,” Steve confesses, fiddling with the sleeve of his hoodie.

There’s no use for him here. Sure, Wakanda is an excellent hiding place, perhaps the best, secluded and safe, but it’s not Steve’s place to be. _We don’t usually have outsiders here,_ had T’Challa mentioned to him and Bucky. Those words had stuck with Steve, but there was more.

He didn’t sleep much in the first place, but now his nights were spent wide awake, clutching his phone, waiting for it to ring, ring, ring… He would have answered it in a heartbeat.

And maybe Steve was filled with false hope, but he couldn’t let it go.

So he doesn’t. He’s going to fix what is broken ‒  that what can be fixed. He’s going to paint over the cracks, start a new page.

First, he’s going to help out his team. Then, he’s going to hide somewhere and build up the courage to face Tony ‒ hopefully by the time his phone stops being mute. And if that happened, he’d run ‒ he’d run to Tony.

There’s no use for him here ‒ even Bucky is deep asleep, resembling dead more than alive. He’s alone. He would be alone anywhere else too, but what was he going to do, just sit and sketch while T’Challa’s people kept him fed and comfortable?

No, even though Captain America had ceased to exist the moment he had dropped the vibranium shield for Tony to pick up and hang on his wall, Steve Rogers is still a man of action.

He’s a man with a plan. A vague a plan, but a plan nonetheless.

And now is the time for _action._

“Leave? May I ask why?” T’Challa says, lifting his brow.

“This is not my place to be,” says Steve with a sigh, rubbing his forehead. He’s tired down to his bones, no matter how little sleep his body requires after the serum. He’s been tired since the Accords, since Peggy, but he _can’t_ rest. Not before he acquires some peace of mind. “Besides, I’m an outsider.”

“You’re an ally. A friend ‒ and a friend is not an outsider.”

T’Challa’s words warm his heart, but he really needs to go. “As much as I’d like to stay and as safe as I could be here, I have things to do,” Steve explains.

The glint in T’Challa’s eyes tells Steve that he understands exactly what he means. “Very well,” T’Challa says, leaning forward, patting Steve’s shoulder. “We’ll ready you a ship.”

“You don’t need to-“ T’Challa makes a shushing gesture towards Steve and then smiles, saying,

“What? Do you think you can walk across the continent of Africa and then swim across the Atlantic Ocean? I doubt even Captain America could do that.”

“And Black Panther? Could he?” Steve shoots back, making T’Challa laugh and grab him into a hug.

“Most definitely,” he says, pulling back. His eyes are warm, but a little glazed. _He’s young,_ Steve realizes. He’s lost his father, and a whole nation is relying on him. Steve wishes him some peace of mind. When Steve leaves, at least T’Challa will have one less of a headache. He doesn’t say anything out loud, though. He just smiles back at T’Challa, hoping he’ll know how grateful Steve is.

“I’d like to head off this evening,” Steve says, “Would that be possible?”

T’Challa nods, and Steve leaves the room to gather the little belongings he has.

“Steve?” T’Challa calls after him. “Do not worry about your friend,” he assures, “Shuri is working on it. He won’t be the Winter Soldier for long.”

Steve does pay a visit to Bucky before making his way to his ship, tapping the glass in front of his friend’s tranquil face, unable to resist a sad smile.

“See you around,” he mutters, turning his back, leaving Bucky to slumber.

Princess Shuri is waiting for him when he enters the ship base.

“Princess,” Steve greets her, and she just gives a simple short smile as an answer.

“We have readied a ship for you,” she says, “Amara will fly you overseas, nothing else. Then you’ll be on your own.”

She tilts her head towards a tall woman standing further next to the a shiny modern ship.

“Roger that,” Steve says, saluting the woman who gives no response.

Shuri smirks, and turns to Steve to ask, “How are you, Captain Rogers?”

“Steve,” Steve corrects, “I’m alright, Princess. Glad to go home, actually.” _Or was he? What was his home, in the end? America? Brooklyn?_

_~~Tony?~~ _

“Sad to see you go,” says Shuri. Her youth is even more striking than T’Challa’s, who’s a grown man, after all. Shuri has the posture of a true princess, and the keen eyes of a prodigy. Still, she can’t be more than a couple years older than that spider boy Tony had recruited. For a fleeting moment, Steve can only see a young girl in a Star Wars t-shirt.

Shuri grabs Steve’s shoulder and pats it gently. Her smile is wan.

“Take care of Bucky for me? Promise?” Steve insists.

“Promise.” Shuri smiles softly. “Sergeant Barnes will be safe in my hands,” she says, “Actually, that’s why I’m here. My brother told me you were leaving and I had to let you know that I’m close to a breakthrough.”

Her eyes glisten with excitement, the way Tony’s do when he rambles on about his inventions.

Out of every possible genius on the planet Earth and outer space, it was Shuri who was the most likely to decode Bucky. If Tony Stark had one breakthrough a day, Shuri had two.

“I just thought,” Shuri continues, “It’ll take me a few more weeks, at least.” She grimaces at her words, as if it was a disgrace it would take that long. Steve had nothing to complain. Shuri had worked and worked, and as much as Steve wanted to see Bucky up and about again, they weren’t in a hurry.

“Anyway,” Shuri sighs, “I thought you might want to wait until he’s up. Then you could leave together.”

The thought tempted Steve, but he had made up his mind. Bucky would understand. Bucky would follow him, T’Challa would take care of that.

“No, I have business to do,” Steve says. He couldn’t let his team be locked up even one more day. “Thanks for the heads up, Shuri. You’re truly miraculous.”

“I know.” Shuri’s smile is smug, but not arrogant.

 

\--

 

Steve leaves Wakanda. A week later, he helps his team break out of their prison. No one comes to stop them, so Steve suspects maybe Tony has something to do about that. Maybe he’s letting it happen. Warmth spreads through Steve’s chest at the thought, but he also knows that they’re Tony’s friends too ‒ well, he may not be that acquainted with Sam and Scott ‒ to be honest Steve himself doesn’t know Scott at all ‒ but Tony understands. Locking them up in the Raft is just cruel.

They head back with a stolen quinjet. Everyone parts their own ways. Scott is the first one to go, muttering something about “Cassie”, “Hope” and “Pym”. Steve has no idea what he’s talking about but he lets him leave without interfering. He knows Scott has a criminal past ‒ the man is used to running. He would manage; apparently he had people who took care of him. At least Steve hoped so. Scott may be only an acquaintance to Steve, but he had been part of his team, and Steve cared about his team.

“Take care,” he says to Scott, who nods, a little dazed, salutes at Sam and then runs off until he shrinks himself, disappearing into the world.

“He came to visit us, you know,” says Clint as they’re on their way to his farm. Sam is piloting the ship, humming to himself to fill the quiet. Wanda is dozing off, and Clint had been inspecting his arrows, brow furrowed, for the past half an hour.

Steve, lost in his thoughts, slowly looks at Clint, raising his brows towards his hairline.

“Stark,” Clint elaborates with a grunt, “He came when we first had been locked up. I thought he was there to boast. Preach about his victory. But-“

“He cares about you,” Steve interrupts, “All of you.”

“Even me?” Sam quips from the cockpit.

“Sure,” Steve snort. _God, he has missed his friends._

Clint is squinting at him like Steve is a puzzle is trying to figure out. “You have that blind faith in him again,” he comments, “I thought you hated his guts.”

“No,” Steve says gruffly. _Never._ He wouldn’t hate Tony, not even over this. There had been much at stake, but Steve had realized long ago that Tony was the one who had been hurt the most. Sure, Steve didn’t agree with the Accords and sure, Tony shouldn’t have went after Bucky, but‒

They had all been exhausted, distracted.

They didn’t know. His team didn’t know what had went down in Siberia ‒ the only ones who did were Steve, Tony and Bucky. Not even T’Challa knew the whole truth. He hadn’t been _there,_ seeing the pure terror in Tony’s eyes as Steve’s shield had came into contact with his chest.

Clint looks like he doesn’t believe Steve, so Steve says,

“You fought Natasha ‒ do you hate her guts?”

At that, Clint rolls his eyes, like he’s saying _it’s not the same at all._ And it isn’t. Clint is a man with a wife and a handful of kids. Natasha is his best little spy friend. Steve and Tony, however ‒ it had felt more like a painful divorce than an ugly spat between two friends.

 _You’ve been a complete idiot,_ Tony had said. _I’m trying to keep you from tearing the Avengers apart._

 _The Avengers are yours,_ had Steve written. Like he had been talking about their children. Like they were family.

Screw that, maybe they _were._ If Tony had thought that as well, Steve was even more angry at himself for participating in destroying all they had built.

 _Zemo,_ he has to remind himself. They had an outsider to blame ‒ partly. How easy would it be to decide it was all Zemo’s fault. Only that wasn’t true.

Steve sighs. Clint seems to take a note of that, but doesn’t say anything.

Yes, Clint and Natasha were friends that had to momentarily turn against each other, but Steve was a man whose heart beat for Tony Stark.

Still.

After everything.

Even more so, Tony’s hurt eyes haunted him at night and day.

Wanda’s gaze bores into him, making Steve squirm. Steve thinks she’s discreet, not invading anyone’s mind without consent, but Steve suspects his feelings can be read from his face.

“Five minutes, Barton,” Sam announces, making Clint sigh deeply, banging the back of his head against the wall.

“Reckon Laura will tear me a new one, Cap?” Clint groans.

“I don’t know. She seems like a kind woman,” Steve replies.

“I think she will,” comments Sam.

After Clint has bidden his goodbyes, retiring perhaps for real now, Steve looks at Wanda. “Where to?” he asks her.

Wanda blinks at him slowly. She looks miserable ‒ pale, thin, and exhausted. Steve had seen how they’d treated her in the Raft. He recognizes Wanda is a _very_ dangerous woman, but on the other hand she’s only a girl who has a hard time understanding her powers.

“I have nowhere to go,” she says, speaking for the first time since their escape. Her voice is hoarse. Steve rubs the back of his neck. Technically she’s right.

“Unless…” Wanda continues before Steve can propose any desperate solution. He’d take the girl with him if it came to it. Or send her to Wakanda. “I could go back to… You know. Vision will be there. I think he could understand me ‒ I like him, even though he took the other side.” She licks her lips, turns to gaze at her feet.

“Tony will be there as well,” Steve reminds gently. Tony, who had kept Wanda locked up, deeming her too dangerous to enter the outside world.

“I feel no resentment towards him. Not anymore,” Wanda admits, “ I’ll go live with him. I have no fear to face him. Do you think he’ll take me in?”

“Yes,” Steve says without a doubt. It’ll be good ‒ Tony needs people around him, to stop loneliness from eating him alive, and Steve knows he doesn’t feel resentment towards Wanda either. He may even be sorry for locking her in the facility.

Steve wishes he was as brave as Wanda. Seeing Tony is something Steve wants badly, but he can’t do it. Not just yet. He is not ready to see that hurt cloud Tony’s eyes again.

Both of them need a little time to heal.

 

\--

 

Sam comes to their rescue ‒ apparently his cousin owns a cottage somewhere in Minnesota, deep in the middle of the woods.

“He never comes here anymore, it should be empty,” Sam explains as they make their way through the forest, Wanda swatting bugs away with her red bursts of energy.

The cottage is miserable and cold, far from homey, but it’ll do for now.

They sit in their small circle in the common room, eating granola bars Sam had bought from a gas station, brainstorming.

How to get in contact with Tony has established itself as the problem. They can’t just march Wanda into the facility. They do trust Tony to take her in and take care of her. They trust him to hide her so that no one will know her location, but there are two things they have to take into account: the fact there could be someone who’s not on their side ‒ they’re all three wanted criminals, after all ‒ and that Steve, well, couldn’t handle facing Tony, despite the ache in his chest.

“Maybe we should contact his girlfriend?” Sam suggests.

Steve huffs, “Let’s not drag Pepper into this. Besides, they’re not together anymore.”

It feels like Sam and Wanda’s stares are boring holes into his skin.

Steve fidgets with the phone in his pocket. There’s always that option. There’s no guarantee Tony will pick up ‒ and Steve won’t be the one to call him. It’s Tony choice, Steve can’t force himself on him.

He takes the battered phone from his pocket. Sam and Wanda lean closer to look at it.

Sighing, Steve hands the phone to Sam. “You call him,” he says with a strained voice.

Sam starts to splutter, but a strict glare from Wanda makes a stop to it.

“I’ll…” Sam says clutching the phone, “Go to the other room.” The bedroom door shuts behind him, and Steve and Wanda are left alone in silence. Sam speaks so quietly, maybe on purpose, that not even Steve’s enhanced hearing can make out the words.

Wanda chews on her granola bar. Her cheeks are slowly gaining some color.

“So, where have you been?” she asks.

“Wakanda,” Steve answers shortly.

“Wakanda?” Wanda repeats, tilting her head.

“Yeah, you know Black Panther? T’Challa? His country.”

“Oh, I remember,” Wanda says, “Why didn’t you stay there? Was it not safe?”

“Very safe,” Steve says.

“If you were safe and hidden, why did you come back? Did they kick you out?” Wanda asks, picking raisins from her granola bar, looking at Steve with curious eyes.

“No, no,” Steve says, “The opposite! They would have actually wanted me to stay. But I had things to do, somewhere else to be. I couldn’t leave my team in peril.”

A light smile dawns on Wanda’s face. “Thank you,” she says. Then, after a pause, “That’s not all there is?”

“No,” Steve says, the word so silent it can barely be heard.

“You’re here for him? You’re here for Mr. Stark ‒ Tony.”

Steve sighs, ”Are you snooping in my head, Wanda?”

Wanda smirks. “No, you know I don’t do that. Besides, you’d know.” The smile dies from her face, turning into a slightly worried expression. “I’m pretty good at reading people without invading their heads. And your emotions are clear on your face. Plus the fact that you made Sam call Tony instead of grabbing the phone yourself.”

Rubbing his forehead, Steve thinks that Wanda has spent too much time with Natasha. He has confirmed his thoughts of being so obvious that people can sense what he’s thinking.

It’s then when Sam returns, throwing the phone back to Steve. “He almost hung up on me,” Sam states, “but let me talk with some assistant. They’ll come and pick up Wanda tomorrow, from the gas station we visited.”

Wanda sighs in relief.

“They?” Steve inquires.

“Yeah, I don’t know who,” Sam admits.

 

\--

 

Steve doesn’t go with Sam and Wanda. He stays sulking in the cabin, unable to let go of the silent phone. Not even Shuri has texted him an update on Bucky. Frustrated, Steve huffs and throws himself on the bed, stares at the stained ceiling.

Hours later, Sam comes back without Wanda, carrying two bags of McDonalds.

“America’s national dish,” he announces, handing Steve a Big Mac.

“Well, how was it?” Steve asks, almost bursting.

Sam pours ketchup on his fries. He looks starved. “Mm… Some assistant chick came and grabbed Wanda into a car with tinted windows. Didn’t say much. Apparently they’re going to New York in a private jet. Don’t know where Stark’s going to hide her. I don’t think she can go to the HQ with Vision, it’s too heavily supervised.”

Steve nods, looking at his burger. He’s not hungry, contrary to Sam who’s wolfing down everything.

“Now we have to figure out what to do with you,” Sam says with a sigh, “I’m not actually keen on spending any more time in this rotting rathole. And there’s always the danger that my cousin will come to check his property.”

Steve can only nod again.

“What’s your plan? Are you just going to sulk and pine here, maybe grow a beard?” Sam tries to tease.

“I don’t know,” Steve admits. He only wishes Tony would call, so he glances at the phone again. Sam notices, and rolls his eyes.

“I know you and Stark have a complicated past, but I didn’t know you could be this pathetic. What’s stopping you from going ahead and confronting him? Kissing his brains out? Don’t bullshit me, Rogers, I know you have feelings. I can even hear them from the way you say the guys name.” Sam rolls his eyes. “ _Tony,”_ he copies Steve’s strained and longing tone of voice.

Steve almost chokes on his burger. He knows he’s turned bright red.

Frowning, Sam asks, “What actually went down between you two?”

“Bucky,” Steve coughs up.

“Bucky?”

“Bucky… He killed Tony’s parents when he was the Winter Soldier. Tony… He didn’t take it well, even though Bucky was under mind control at the time. The worst thing is-“ Steve closes his eyes. He can see the hurt, the raw pain in Tony’s eyes.

_Don’t bullshit me, Rogers! Did you know?_

“I knew,” Steve whispers, “And I never told him, until it was too late.”

 _I was sparing you,_ he had written in the letter, pouring his heart out, but not the amount he would have wanted to.

“I hurt him, Sam,” Steve says and his voice cracks.

Sam drops his head in his hands. “Fuck,” he breathes.

“Yeah,” Steve says, rubbing his eyes. _He’s not going to cry. This is not his hurt, not his pain._

Except he feels so connected to Tony it actually is. It’s cracking his heart in half.

“Stark has gone through a lot,” Sam says with a quiet voice, “Do you know what happened to Rhodes?”

“What?” Steve says, unable to prevent his voice from trembling slightly, “What happened to Rhodey?”

“Tony, he… I think he asked Vision to stop you from leaving, but Vision hit Rhodes instead. He fell… before Tony or I could reach him.” Sam looks grim, chewing on his lips.

“Christ,” Steve says, “Is he…”

“Alive. He was. I don’t know how he’s doing now,” Sam knows.

“Christ…” Steve huffs again.

“When I joined the Avengers, I never knew it’d come to this. Sam Wilson, the Falcon, now an outlaw… With Captain America of all people… What are we going to do now?”

“Sam, I’m out of ideas,” Steve admits. He’s tired. He can’t grovel back to Wakanda, it’s too far. He needs to be near Tony in case of him _needing_ Steve.

And he can’t go to Tony without him needing Steve. But Sam can.

“You could go where Tony is. Where Wanda is,” he suggests.

“I don’t want to,” says Sam gruffly, “And what about you?” Then, something dawns on him. He turns to Steve, gasping,

“Sharon.”

 

\--

 

Sharon Carter is a great ally. It amazes Steve how effortlessly she seems to arrange everything, even though she’s merely an agent.

Cautious, she first points a gun at them when they arrive on her doorstep, but soon the tension in her shoulders eases and she agrees to help them.

Currently, Steve’s standing in a small studio apartment in Philadelphia. Sharon is shuffling through some documents, checking if there’s any mistakes. Steve looks around in the shabby place. It’s most likely one of those SHIELD hiding spots he’s already familiar with. Sam has a similar one in Long Island.

“All should be fine now,” Sharon announces, handing the documents to Steve, who glances at his new identity. Apparently, he’s legally called Mathew Cavanaugh, for now.

“Thank you, Sharon,” Steve says, “Honestly, I couldn’t thank you enough. You didn’t have to put your position ‒ yourself ‒ in danger for us. If SHIELD gets to know about this, you’re over. Me and Sam ‒ well, we’re wanted criminals.”

“No problem,” Sharon says with a genuine smile. She has helped Steve so much during everything that she has earned his trust. She knows well enough it was Steve who assisted the prison break, and she hasn’t asked about Scott or Clint or Wanda.

However, this is another level. If Sharon gets caught, it’s another life Steve has indirectly ruined. He sighs.

“Thank you,” he says once again.

“Hey,” Sharon says, punching his arm gently, “Stop thanking me! I want to help. And don’t worry ‒ I’m good at this. SHIELD will never know.”

“Right,” Steve says. Sharon’s words have managed to calm him down. They stare at each other, and Steve remembers their kiss. That was… complicated. Something they perhaps need to talk about.

“I should go,” Sharon says, pointing at the door. “But I’ll visit you. You shouldn’t be alone.”

She comes back the next day, and the next, and the next... “All they know is that I’m seeing someone in Philadelphia,” she says one evening when they’re watching some black-and-white movie from the 50s. Steve hasn’t have nothing else to do than to strengthen his popular culture knowledge, and think about Tony, and brood.

“Really? Who?” Steve mumbles. They’re having chinese takeout and Steve is twirling noodles around his fork.

“You,” Sharon chuckles, “I meant you.”

“Oh,” Steve says, “Look, Sharon-“

Sharon shushes him, pushing her forefinger playfully against Steve’s lips. “I know. We weren’t meant to be, meant to last,” she says, “It’s just a cover up. So that no one suspects why I come to Philly so often.” She seems to hesitate, then asks, not daring to actually look at Steve, “Did our kiss mean anything to you?”

Steve considers it for a moment. “No,” he finally says, “It was… I guess I really needed a kiss.” He chuckles. “A distraction. Hell, I thought I was going to have to fight a handful of super soldiers. Ended up fighting my friends instead… And you were there, and friendly.”

Sharon nods, looking wistful. “So, we can both conclude that we are, in fact, over before we even begun.”

“Yes,” Steve says. It’s only fair. _And he has feelings for someone else._

“Besides, it would have been weird because…”

“Peggy,” they both finish, then laugh.

Sighing, Sharon continues, “I really miss her, though.” She places her head on Steve’s shoulder, something that Steve knows can be totally friendly in today’s context.

“Me too,” he says longingly.

They fall into silence, trying to get back into the film. “I kind of lied. I am seeing someone,” Sharon says quietly after a while.

“In Philadelphia?”

Sharon shakes her head, saying, “No, in New York,” she pauses, seeming nervous. “Her name is Lisa-Marie.”

“Oh,” Steve says.

“It’s new,” Sharon continues, “But I’m really happy with her. This could lead somewhere.”

“I’m glad,” Steve smiles.

Sharon has a dopey and undeniably happy smile on her lips. “Yeah,” she yawns, “It’s getting late.” She turns off the television where the end credits are rolling, then stares at Steve for a while, measuring him with her gaze.

“You should call Stark. I think he misses you,” she says, something Steve hadn’t expected at all.

She pats his shoulder, and leaves him alone, totally dumbfounded.

 

\--

 

Steve doesn’t take Sharon’s advice. He’s scared, terrified, but not sure of what.

Rejection? Hatred? Silence?

His life is quiet and uneventful ‒ even peaceful, except for his tumultuous mind. He follows the news, he reads, he watches movies with Sharon, texts with Sam.

One evening, he receives a message from Shuri. She informs him that something came up in Wakanda, and she couldn’t work on “Operation Bucky”, but now she’s back on track.

 _Soon,_ she writes, and that cheers Steve up a little bit. He hopes everything’s alright in Wakanda. He wonders if he could have helped.

But then, four past midnight on an otherwise calm Wednesday evening, his phone starts blasting.

It startles Steve who had been brushing his teeth. He grabs the phone from the pocket of his sweatpants, almost breaking it in his grip. First, he thinks it’s Sam, or Sharon, or Shuri, even though they _never_ call him, only text.

But no.

_Tony._

“Hello?” Steve answers. His voice is shaking, his hands are shaking, his legs are shaking. He feels weak, collapsing on the bathroom floor, leaning on the washing machine. His heartbeat is in his throat.

Steve hears only breathing, the a quiet, clean, and emotionless, “Cap.”

“ _Tony,”_ Steve sighs, closing his eyes. He knows he’s saying the name _exactly_ like Sam had mimicked.

Tony doesn’t reply anything, and Steve doesn’t open his mouth, but it still feels like they’re communicating.

_I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry._

“Tony,” Steve says again. His lips pull into a smile. Even though everything hurts, he’s so happy. It’s _Tony._ Finally. “How are you?”

“I-“ Tony says, but doesn’t find the words. That one small syllable is still music to Steve’s ears. ¨

“Is Wanda safe?” Steve asks instead.

“Yeah,” Tony breathes. It’s only a faint whisper. “Don’t worry. I got her. How’s the rest of the team?”

“Good,” Steve says, “Hiding.”

“With you? See, Wanda doesn’t really speak to me.”

“No,” Steve says, “I’m by myself.”

It’s silent again, until,

“I’m sorry, Tony.” Steve tries not to squeeze the phone too hard, so that it doesn’t shatter in his desperate grasp.

He can almost _see_ Tony, maybe sitting on the edge of a couch, leaning slightly forward, shoulders tense, eyes closed, as he says, “ _Don’t.”_

“Why did you call me?” Steve has to ask, squeezing his shut. Suddenly, he feels asthmatic again, almost forgetting how to breathe. Tony doesn’t answer. The only sounds Steve can hear are his neighbors’ muffled shouts coming from upstairs.

Then, Tony hangs up.

Tony hangs up, and Steve drops the phone on the bathroom carpet, draws his knees closer to his body and puts his head between them.

He doesn’t realize he’s crying until the phone starts ringing again.

“I don’t know why I called you,” Tony says before Steve can get a word in. Tony’s voice is rushed; fast and laced with anxiety. There’s nothing Steve wants to do more than appear on his side, wrap an arm around his shoulders, soothe him, let him know everything will be alright. “I honestly don’t know. What I know, is that I can’t stop thinking about you.”

Steve’s heartbeat skyrockets. It’s all over the place. “I can’t stop thinking about you either,” he confesses, wiping the tears from his face. His pressing the phone hard against his ear with his other hand, as if it would bring him closer to Tony.

Tony chuckles. It sounds ugly, heartless, and morbid. “I thought you’d already forgotten you gave me the phone.”

“No,” Steve says, “I think about you constantly. Every minute ‒ every hour at least. I can’t let go of my phone in case you happen to call. And tonight, you did. _Thank you.”_

“Oh, so you don’t have to stress about it anymore? You’re welcome,” Tony says bitterly.

“No,” Steve repeats, “I really needed to hear your voice.”

“Then why didn’t you call me?” Tony asks.

“Because… I didn’t want to push. It was me who hurt you. If I called, you wouldn’t have answered,” Steve explains. His face is sticky with tears.

It’s silent, until Tony says softly, “I would have answered. I did ‒ when you made Wilson call. Gosh, I was so mad when I heard his voice. I was so disappointed it was him.”

Steve, quite frankly, doesn’t know how to deal with that. He takes a quivery breath.

“I miss you,” Steve says, almost choking on the words. _Come back. Let_ me _come back to you. “Please…”_

He doesn’t know what to say. He’s freezing, feeling colder than in Siberia, colder than when he was sleeping in the ice for 70 years.

That had felt like only a second. The silence between him and Tony feels more like the 70 years.

“Can we meet?” Steve has never sounded so timid, so vulnerable.

 

\--

 

“You’ve grown a beard,” is the first thing comes out of Tony’s mouth when he sees Steve.

It was decided quickly. There was no other option for Steve than to say ‘yes’ when Tony hesitantly asks Steve if he wants to come stay with Tony.

It’s the only answer Steve considers in his elated state of mind.

So, there’s that. He’s moving in. Not in the facility, it’s too heavily supervised. Someone would catch him in the end, and then they would be ‒ Tony included ‒ in big trouble.

Instead, he’s going to stay with Wanda in Tony’s private estate.

Steve touches his beard self-consciously. It was something that Sharon constantly teased him about, but it was a necessity. With facial hair, he’s harder to recognize. Captain America was always clean shaven.

Tony looks the same. A little more worry lines on his face, a little less light in eyes, but otherwise, the same.

“You look good,” Steve says. A corner of Tony’s mouth twitches at that.

“You’ve got a bad timing, Rogers,” Tony says, and he doesn’t quite sound like himself. He refuses to meet Steve’s eyes, for start. “I’m needed in a meeting. My assistant will show you around.”

Only then Steve notices a relatively young woman, maybe in her early 30s, standing a little further. He frowns nervously, but then Tony steps forward ‒ he’s intoxicating close, so close that Steve can smell his faint aftershave ‒ and says, “Don’t bother worrying, we can trust her. She’s Rhodey’s niece, or second cousin, or something, I don’t really remember. The main point is that Rhodey trusts her and so do I.”

Steve nods, and lets Tony leave. After Tony’s gone, the woman approaches Steve, smiling.

“Lisa-Marie Rhodes,” she says, offering her hand. As Steve shakes it, he wonders why her name strikes a familiarity in him. He shakes her hand a little too long, so that she starts to look a bit uncomfortable, her smile freezing on her face as Steve analyzes her features, trying to figure her out. She has dark brown skin, similar cornrows as Shuri ‒ same intelligent glint in her eyes as well ‒ and she’s wearing bright pink lipstick, but nothing in her is a familiar as her name.

“Sorry,” Steve mutters, letting go of her hand, “I’m just trying to decide if I know you from somewhere.”

Lisa-Marie’s smile is understanding. “It’s fine. Perhaps not, but I assume you know a certain Sharon Carter?”

“Yes,” Steve says, squinting at her. Then, it dawns on him.

“I’m her girlfriend,” Lisa-Marie admits.

“Well,” Steve chuckles, “It’s a small world.”

“It is,” Lisa-Marie agrees, “Shall we get inside? It might start raining soon, and Ms. Maximoff is waiting.”

Steve spares one more glance at the direction where Tony had disappeared, half excepting him to be standing there, observing Steve’s exchange with Lisa-Marie. There’s no one there, however, so Steve follows Lisa-Marie inside.

They find Wanda in the common room, half glancing at some mindless soap opera on the TV, half scrolling through her phone.

“You have a visitor, Ms. Maximoff,” Lisa-Marie announces. Wanda’s head snaps up faster than lightspeed, her eyes hopeful. The hope in her eyes die for a nanosecond, then it’s replaced by joy.

_She had been expecting someone else._

“Steve,” she squeals, throwing the phone on the couch cushion, rushing forward to embrace him warmly.

“Wanda, how are you?” Steve asks. At the same time, Lisa-Marie’s phone starts to ring.

“I’m sorry, I have to get this,” she excuses herself. Steve hears her talking to the phone as she walks away, “Yes, Mr. Parker? No, he’s in a meeting. I don’t know…”

“I’m good,” Wanda says, staring at Lisa-Marie walking away. “It’s him, again,” she whispers.

“Who?” Steve asks.

“Peter Parker,” Wanda elaborates, “The spiderling. Spiderboy ‒ sorry, Spiderman. He’s constantly trying to contact _him.”_

“Hold on, the kid?”

“Yes. He was just here a couple nights ago. Didn’t see me, but I see everything. He used to bother Mr. Hogan, but then Tony gave him Lizzy’s number. I don’t know what he’s so keen on ‒ I heard Tony say he turned down his offer to become an official Avenger. Perhaps he’s reconsidering.”

“How is he?” Steve has to asks.

Wanda smiles softly, saying, “I assume you mean Tony, not Peter. He’s… Well, we don’t talk much. We weren’t that friendly to begin with. I think he’s afraid me, or at least of my powers. The vision is showed him… Anyway, I think he’s lonely. Did you know he broke up with his girlfriend? They’re still friends, but it’s awkward. Colonel Rhodes is all he has. And Vision ‒ but Vis is forced to stay in the facility so that no suspicions will rise. I would rather have him here, and he wishes so as well, and so does Tony, but…”

Wanda trails off, shrugging and smiling sadly.

Steve grasps her shoulder, offering her comfort. He knows well enough how it feels like to be kept apart from people he cares about.

They sit down, and Steve asks, “Where’s Natasha?”

“I believe she’s on a mission,” Wanda says, “That’s what I’ve gathered. Rhodes is still recovering. You do know what happened to him, don’t you?”

Steve nods glumly.

“I’ve been trying to help,” Wanda admits, “The truth is, the state of the Avengers doesn’t look so great know. If we were needed now, there’d be only Vis and Tony.”

“Still no word from Bruce? Thor?”

“No.” Wanda shakes her head. “I think T’Challa would come to aid. And there’s the new guy, Strange.”

“Who?” Steve frowns, but Wanda merely shrugs.

“I don’t know much. I think he does things with portals, but he’s more of an ally than an Avenger. Oh, and we have Peter, but he’s a kid.”

“If the world were go awry, right now, would you help?” Steve asks Wanda.

“Without a doubt,” comes Wanda’s answer. Her phone buzzes.

“Who’s that?” Steve asks.

“Vision,” Wanda says. Her cheeks flush a bit as she takes the phone. Steve shakes his head fondly. There’s a relationship he hadn’t seen coming.

Lisa-Marie is back, calling to Steve, “Captain Rogers! Let me show you to your chambers.”

 

\--

 

Steve realizes Tony has returned when he hears the man talking on the phone with Rhodey near Steve’s bedroom.

“No, Rhodey, I don’t think so! Yeah, the kid told me he doesn’t want to be an Avenger after all, but he’s still rounding up on me! You know what, today he’s called Lizzy three times ‒ three times, Rhodey! Have some mercy on your niece, Jesus Christ… Niece, cousin, it’s the same.”

Then, he catches Steve sneaking up on him. He looks startled, like a deer in a headlights, staring at Steve. “Uh huh, you know what, I got to go. Yeah, I’ll call you tomorrow. Bye!”

He hangs up, but doesn’t approach Steve, playing with the phone in his hand.

The silence seems to be too awkward for him, so Tony speaks, asking something out of nowhere, “You know what? You _could_ ask Wilson to join us. I have nothing against the guy, sure, our natures don’t exactly match, but he’s proven himself an adept avenger. I do respect the guy.”

Steve actually _had_ texted Sam, assuring him that Tony would take him in. Sam, stubborn as he was, had said no.

So Steve tells Tony that, getting a nonchalant shrug in response.

Tony starts to walk away, and like a magnet, Steve follows him twenty feet behind.

They wind up in the common room, no Wanda or Lisa-Marie in sight. Actually, Steve thinks Lisa-Marie has gone home already.

Tony makes his way to the cabinet, grabbing a bottle of whiskey, and pouring himself a fair amount. He inclines the bottle towards Steve, and asks, “You want some?”

“Tony, you know I can’t get drunk,” Steve says calmly.

“I was just trying to be considerate,” mutters Tony, sitting on the couch Steve and Wanda had occupied a couple of hours ago. He takes a generous sip, and proceeds to stare at the bottom of the glass, undeniably some expensive crystal collectable left from Howard and Maria.

“So, go ahead,” Tony says darkly, “You can shout now. You can let it all out, be mad at me for going after your precious best pal Barnes.”

The words ‘precious best pal Barnes’ come out as venomous spits.

A lump forms in Steve’s throat. That’s not at all what he wants to do. That’s the last thing he wants to do ‒ cause more guilt to Tony’s already too heavy heart.

“I’m sorry,” he says, trying to load the words with all the meaning he has.

_For not telling you._

_For choosing him._

_For hurting you._

Steve circles around the couch and sits next to Tony. “I truly am. I- I wasn’t thinking straight. Peggy had just died, and she seemed like my last physical link to the past. And then ‒ there was Bucky, and-“

They all sound like excuses. Excuses, excuses, ugly excuses.

“I’m sorry,” he repeats, like a broken record.

“Sorry!” Tony suddenly shouts, “I’ve had enough of your ‘sorry’!” He throws the glass across the room. It shatters against the wall.

“You know what!”  Tony turns to Steve. His eyes are dark, his mouth in a fierce grimace. “I would have helped you! If you’d come to me, I would have helped you with Barnes! See what I did? I came after you in fucking Siberia! If you had just told me-“

Tony’s voice cracks. Steve notices his hands are shaking, so he attempts to catch one.

“Don’t you dare touch me!” Tony hisses, “The last time you touched me, I got hurt!”

 _Guilt._ It burns Steve’s heart and throat. _I’m sorry,_ he almost says, but that would only infuriate Tony further. Instead, he tries to convey it with his eyes.

“Don’t look at me like that,” Tony groans, “Like you regret everything.”

“I do!” Steve says desperately. Tony needs to _know._

Tony doesn’t answer. He takes deep breaths, making Steve grow worried. What if this is causing him an anxiety attack?

“Is everything alright?” a soft voice interrupts them. The both turn their heads towards it, and see Wanda, hesitantly standing at the doorway.

“We’ll be fine,” Steve says, trying not make his voice tremble. Tony’s eyes are wide and startled. It looks like he’s not entirely there. “Go back to your room, Wanda.”

The situation is almost a comical parody ‒ like they are her parents she has just caught fighting.

When Wanda is gone, Steve turns his full attention back to Tony. “Are you alright?” he asks gently.

Tony nods, trying to stand up.

“Please sit down and stay,” Steve pleads.

And that’s what Tony actually does.

“I’m not going to apologize anymore,” he begins, searching eye contact. Tony’s eyes are defiant, but he’s listening. “I’m sure we can agree that we both did some grave mistakes. Let’s not discuss whose were more weighty. That’s irrelevant, as of now. What’s happened won’t be undone. All we can do is rip off the messed up pages, and start a new chapter. Can we do that?”

And there it is ‒ a hint of a smile on Tony’s face. “Cap, why so metaphoric,” he smirks, but adds, “I don’t think I can forget, though.”

“And I don’t presume you will.” He offers an understanding smile. “Baby steps.”

“Baby steps,” Tony echoes.

Steve does something brave. He reaches to place his hand on Tony’s cheek, slowly and gently, seeking consent in Tony’s eyes. Tony doesn’t flinch away, he stares at Steve, transfixed.

“Are we on the same page now?” Steve whispers, lightly caressing Tony’s cheek with his thumb. “You’re not lingering in the past?”

“I-,” Tony falters, “No.”

“Good,” Steve says, wondering if leaning in for a kiss would ruin everything.

He doesn’t have to decide that, because his phone buzzing interrupts him.

 

**Shuri**

_steve!!!! he’s up and about_

_bucky! no more winter soldier!_

Steve lets out a huff off happiness, making Tony frown and lean forward. “Who is it?” Tony asks. Their knees are touching.

“Shuri,” Steve says, staring to tap out a response to her.

“Pardon?”

“Bucky,” Steve says, “He’s up. Shuri ‒ T’Challa’s sister ‒ has decoded him. No one will ever be able to use him again.”

“And?” Tony says, crossing his arms, “What then?”

“I-“ Steve hasn’t thought this through. “Is it too much if I ask you to allow him to live here?”

Something flashes in Tony’s eyes.

_The murderer of his parents. Walking and living and breathing in his home._

“It wasn’t him, Tony,” Steve says softly, placing his hand on Tony’s knee. “It was HYDRA. Bucky was just their weapon.”

“If a weapon destroyed something important to you, wouldn’t you want to destroy the weapon?” Tony whispers hoarsely. His eyes look conflicted.

“I would destroy the one who used the weapon,” Steve says, “Please, give him a chance. Life hasn’t been fair to him.”

“Alright,” Tony breathes, “I’ll do this for you, and _you_ only. But don’t assume I’ll be nice to him.”

Steve’s heart flutters.

 

\--

 

The next evening, a Wakandan ship lands near Tony’s estate. Steve, Tony, and Wanda stand waiting like the world’s oddest reception committee. Steve can feel the anxiety come off from Tony in waves, but Wanda is calm as the night.

Steve and Tony have been circling around each other the whole day. Actually, Tony had been gone most of the day, visiting Rhodey, hopefully giving him Steve’s regards. Steve had mostly spent the day playing chess with Wanda, which as an afterthought was not very wise since Wanda could see what moves Steve was about to make in advance, and thus ended up winning every time.

And Steve isn’t good at chess, anyway.

Now, as the ship flickers into their view, getting rid off its disguise, Steve feels almost as anxious as Tony must be.

There they are; T’Challa and Shuri bracketing Bucky, who’s squinting into the night.

Steve runs to meet him, unable to contain the broad smile spreading on his features.

“Bucky!” he says, as he hugs him. Bucky goes rigid for a while, but returns the hug.

“Good to see you, Steve,” he mutters, patting Steve’s back.

When they part, Steve can see the changes in him. Bucky’s face is a little more relaxed ‒ and he has a new arm, the latest Wakandan technology, probably produced by Shuri.

As Steve is scrutinizing Bucky, Bucky is watching over Steve’s shoulder instead, eyes calculating, mouth twitching.

He’s staring at Tony, who’s stepped back so that he’s standing half behind Wanda. Tony’s eyes hold a cold defiance in them. He’s fiddling with his wristband, as if he’s readying for calling a suit.

It feels like they’re trying to introduce a dog and a cat to each other.

“Stark,” Bucky grunts, nodding at Tony. He looks at Wanda as well, but can’t conjure up her name. Then, his gaze returns to Steve, quietly signaling something like _Steve, what the fuck? Stark?_

T’Challa interrupts them, striding forward, Shuri following in his footsteps. “Mr. Stark, Ms. Maximoff, is good to see you,” he says to Tony and Wanda, who mutter a “your highness” in greeting.

“Steve,” T’Challa smiles at Steve.

“T’Challa,” says Steve.

“Who made him a new arm?” Tony suddenly says. He’s come forward, eyeing Bucky’s arm warily because it’s attached to the killer of his parents, but clearly impressed. Bucky puts his arm behind his back like a child.

 _If they continue to act like this around each other, this is going to be exhausting,_ Steve thinks. He thinks about Bucky and Sam, and their constant bickering. He’ll be glad if Bucky ever gets to that stage with Tony.

It’s a long way to go, but Steve thinks it’s possible.

“I did,” Shuri finally says, stepping forward.

Tony just blinks at her, taking in her youth and confident stature. Shuri’s hair is bundled up on the top of her head, making her look taller.

“Who are you?” Wanda asks, even though she could find it out with a single blink of an eye.

“I’m Shuri,” says Shuri, turning to glance at T’Challa smugly, “The future queen of Wakanda.”

“She is my sister,” says T’Challa tiredly.

“How old are you?” Tony asks, then adds, as an afterthought, “Princess?”

Shuri just smiles walking past them towards the estate, Bucky and T’Challa hesitantly following her.

“I bet I could make him a better arm!” Tony calls after her.

“Seriously doubt that, old man!” Shuri chirps with a sing-song tone, making Tony splutter.

 

\--

 

“So, care to explain what are we doing in Stark’s house?” Bucky asks as he enters Steve’s room later in the evening. He leans on the doorway, crossing his arms, staring at Steve quizzically.

Steve had seen the confusion coming. “Tony is not our enemy, Bucky,” he says calmly.

“But he was?”

Taking a moment, Steve answers, “No. He never was. We had a big ugly disagreement, that’s true, but I never hated him. And I hope he never hated me.”

_So was I._

_Was._

Bucky strides across the room and sits next to Steve on the bed. “So, all is good now?”

“I don’t know,” Steve admits. Sometimes it still looks like Tony wants to flinch when he’s in Steve’s company.

“He hates me for sure,” Bucky states.

“Give it time,” Steve hums.

“Right,” Bucky says, gritting his teeth, “Like he will ever forgive the man who murdered his parents.”

“I wasn’t you. It was HYDRA, using you,” Steve says sternly. He’s not going to let Bucky feel bad about this. If he must, he’s going to spend the rest of his life reminding Bucky ‒ and Tony ‒ that Bucky wasn’t at fault.

“It was still these hands,” Bucky says, lifting them. His new metal one glints in the light. Steve can recognize it’s made of vibranium. “He will never be unable to see the blood in them. And I will never be able to completely wash it away.”

“Give it time,” Steve repeats. He trust Tony will grow to grant Bucky forgiveness. It’ll happen when the pain and the betrayal doesn’t sting so sharp anymore.

“Time,” Bucky huffs, “Did you ever see this coming? Us two, lost in time? We’ve lost 70 years, Steve.”

“Yeah,” Steve says, thinking back to the days when he was just a small boy from Brooklyn. “I never saw this coming.”

“So, you and Stark?” Bucky says, smirking.

“Me and Stark what?” Steve replies, willing away a blush.

Bucky snort. “Don’t try to act all innocent, Stevie. I’m perceptive. Why else would you hurry away from Wakanda, even leaving me behind?”

“I had to get my team!” Steve tries to defend himself.

“And, then you apparently _had to_ run straight into Stark’s arms?”

“I- I was hiding for a while. He offered…”

“Jesus,” Bucky chuckles, “I get it Steve. I leave you deal with your feelings in peace. But don’t pretend they don’t exist! You should go for it, by the way. You two would be a literal power couple.”

“I doubt he wants anything more… I doubt he even wants to be friends anymore… I kept a heavy secret from him, and then beat him with my shield…”

“There are worse couples,” Bucky says, as the complications between were just a minor things. “Did you have feelings for him before this mess?”

“Bucky, I’ve had feelings for him for years,” Steve says. It actually feels good to admit that. The only time he had gone close to speaking those exact words out loud was when Natasha was trying set him up with basically everyone she knew.

Steve had only wanted Tony. He had only wanted Tony for years, even when things got ugly.

“Ever since…” Steve continues softly, “Ever since the battle of Manhattan. First, I thought he was some self-centered jerk. Well, he gives that first impression to everyone, but there’s so much more to him. I latched on to him after battle. Everything was… him, and it never stopped. I loved him in silence. Still do.”

“Love?” Bucky says quietly.

“I think so,” Steve answers even more quietly.

“Jesus Christ… I come back and you’ve fallen in love… Steve, you have to take action. You don’t want this to end like Peggy.”

 _Do you think I don’t know that? That’s my biggest fear,_ Steve thinks, but doesn’t dare to say anything.

Bucky sighs, “Enough of this girl talk. Is there any left over pizza? Or did Shuri eat it all?”

 

\--

 

T’Challa leaves ‒ he has kingly duties to attend to.

Shuri stays.

“T’Challa has a job for me,” Steve hears Shuri answer to Bucky when he asks her why she’s still here. “But I thought I’d first spend a couple of days here. Just out of curiosity.”

She settles right in ‒ befriends Wanda in a second. She even starts to get along with Tony, who’s still not convinced that she’s more of a genius than he is.

~~But she is.~~

After Tony soon finds out Shuri excels in the medical field as well, he immediately takes her to Rhodey. Some new guy called “Strange” had apparently been treating Rhodey, and Rhodey was gradually gaining mobility, but Tony still waited for a miracle.

After Tony and Shuri come back, the little tension they had between them is gone, replaced by gentler teasing. They’re speaking in fluent science jargon that makes Steve’s head spin. It reminds Steve of the times in the tower, of Tony and Bruce, and his heart aches for the past.

Steve catches them arguing playfully one morning when he walks into the kitchen area.

“Are you sure you don’t want to redesign your suits? I really have some good ideas,” Shuri is saying while peeling an orange.

“No,” Tony complains, “My suits are perfect!”

“Ceiling lady?” Shuri says, “When was the last time he had problems with at least one of his suits?”

“Three days ago,” FRIDAY voices.

Tony rolls his eyes. “Her name is FRIDAY,” he says to Shuri, who knows that perfectly well, but has fun calling FRIDAY “ceiling lady”. “And she’s totally getting reprogrammed. JARVIS would have never betrayed me.” Tony glares at the ceiling.

Shuri snickers, and leaves the room.

“Unbelievable,” Tony mutters to Steve, pouring him a coffee without asking. “Young people… It’s the same with Parker… Remind me to never let him meet Shuri.”

“Why not?” Steve says, taking the coffee. “Maybe he needs some superhero friends his age.”

“Last time I checked, Shuri was not a superhero,” Tony points out.

“She fought in a war in Wakanda. And she’s super smart. She’s got all the ingredients. How is Parker, by the way?”

“Trying to restrain from spidering around too much. Isn’t going well ‒ at least every other day he’s beating up some mugger. Always too eager to call me about it. I told him he could be an avenger, you know? If he wanted to. Said he wasn’t ready yet, I guess this is his way of gaining experience. Smart kid.”

Tony sighs, sipping his coffee. “Although I do regret bringing him into our fight. Well ‒ we were short of choices then. Should’ve tried to summon Thor or something… That guy sure loves to fight.”

“Come on,” Steve chuckles, “Thor would have sided with me.”

Tony merely raises a brow at that. Steve is glad they can lightly joke about what happened.

“Have you heard of Thor?” he asks.

“Strange says he was looking for his father. That’s all I know,” Tony replies.

Right. That Strange, again.

“Anyway, Parker is only fifteen. Fifteen! I sent a fifteen year old kid to fight Captain America…”

“Come on, Tony,” Steve says gently. He’s aching to comfort Tony with a touch, but keeps his hands firmly around the coffee cup. “He fought well. Let’s not dwell on the mistakes we’ve made. What’s happened won’t be undone.”

The corner of Tony’s mouth twitches and he gets a soft look in his eyes. “Is that your new mantra, Steve?”

Steve is used to Tony calling him Cap or Rogers, but he rarely goes for plain ‘Steve’. Suddenly, Steve’s heart beats a little faster. “Might be,” he says, locking eyes with Tony. He then realizes how close they are. Steve could count Tony’s eyelashes. He leans forward, sees the confused, slightly unsure look appear in Tony’s eyes…

“Morning.”

It’s Bucky, shuffling past them to the fridge. Both Steve and Tony take a step backwards. Tony starts to rub his neck, looking at anything else but Steve.

Steve gives a stern sharp look at Bucky, who grimaces.

 _Sorry,_ he’s signaling, realizing what he had just interrupted.

The evening of that same day, Steve and Tony end up alone in the living room. Tony’s had a long day ‒ meeting after meeting, and he’s had to deal with Pepper, and Steve suspects the break up still stings.

Gosh, what has Tony had to go through… First, he and Pepper end their romantic relationship, then the Accords, the fight, Siberia…

Steve wants to pull Tony close, hold and caress him. Instead, they sit with a space between them. Tony is forking leftover noodles into his mouth, eyes on the TV where a movie is playing.

Steve has been slowly inching his hand towards Tony, not sure if he wants to grab his hand or place it on his thigh.

“So, how was your day?” Tony asks suddenly, throwing the empty carton on the table. He turns towards Steve, unintentionally shuffling a bit closer so that his leg hits Steve’s hand. Steve retreats his hand as if it had been burned.

“Me?” he answers, “Nothing special. Talked with Bucky. Watched Wanda and Shuri play chess. Texted Sam. An uneventful day in total.”

“When will people learn not to play chess with Wanda,” Tony mutters, shaking his head slightly.

“Shuri beat her twice.”

“Of course she did,” Tony says, “She’s Shuri. She can do anything, including make a new arm for the former Winter Soldier.”

Steve chuckles. The fact that Shuri had made Bucky a perfectly operable arm seemed to bug Tony somehow. When Bucky had mentioned to Steve how light his new arm was compared to the one HYDRA had given him, Tony had suddenly been there, offering to make the arm heavier.

“No, lighter is better,” had Bucky said, surprised that Tony was actually speaking to him. “The previous one felt _too_ heavy.”

“I can still make it better,” Tony had said, glaring at the graceful arm.

“No, you can’t!” had Shuri shouted from the other side of the room.

“How was your day?” Steve asks in turn, eyeing Tony’s profile. Judging by the shadows under his eyes, he’s in dire need of sleep at least.

He can’t help but to think what the situation resembles: like they’re two tired husbands trying get a few minutes alone at the end of the day. Asking the how are yous, talking about the kids… In a way, Steve and Tony are the parents ‒ then there’s the rogue daughter Wanda, the zealous son Peter who’s calls are a routine part of the day, and grumpy uncle Bucky, and Shuri who is Shuri.

They could extend it to Rhodey, Sam, Vision, T’Challa, Natasha…

Steve realizes he hasn’t been building a team all these years. He has been building a rag tag family.

And Tony ‒ he’s a key part of it. Steve’s equal, his other half.

His breath catches in his throat as he looks at Tony in the wan light.

“ _Tony,”_ Steve says, the word loaded with meaning, and Tony looks at him, and _understands._

This time, the kiss lands on Tony’s lips, and it’s everything and more. Steve closes his eyes in the bliss, let’s himself be surrounded by Tony, and only Tony. Everything tunes out ‒ not only the noise of the TV, but the worries of the future and past.

It’s a moment Steve wants to wallow in, spend an eternity in, but it can’t be so.

A sudden noise makes them drift quickly apart. They both lift they’re heads, lips reddened by the kiss, to see Wanda and Shuri standing by the doorway. Shuri has her hand pressed against Wanda’s mouth, but she has been too late. It was Wanda’s sudden gasp that had broken them out of the kiss-haze.

It takes barely a second for Steve and Tony to notice that the girls are fully dressed, as if they’re going somewhere.

Tony squints at them. He’s squeezing Steve’s hand in both of his, as a promise for more.

This isn’t it, at Steve so happy he could burst.

“Where are you going?” Tony asks accusingly.

Shuri is grinning wildly, eyeing Wanda as if she’s asking her _Are you seeing this?_ Wanda is completely dumbfounded, her gaze going back and forth from Steve and Tony.

“Are you trying to go see Vision again?” Tony continues. So this isn’t a one time thing.

“Come on!” Shuri pleads, “I want to see the android man!”

“You can go see him any time you want,” Tony points out.

“But I can’t,” says Wanda, tilting her chin up defiantly.

Tony’s eyes soften. “Wanda, you’re a wanted criminal. If they catch you, you’re going back to the Raft, and maybe never getting out again.”

“He’s right,” Steve says. Wanda shifts her gaze at him. Her eyes say, _I thought you were on my side._

“Come on, Wanda,” Tony says, making his voice even gentler. “I’ll ask Vision to drop by tomorrow.”

Wanda still doesn’t look satisfied, eyeing Tony with mistrust.

“I think I could get us to the facility unseen,” Shuri points out.

“I don’t doubt that, but no,” Tony says.

“Like you are her father!” Shuri scoffs, “If you don’t let us go, I’ll tell Bucky that…”

“Tell Bucky what?” says Bucky, suddenly appearing behind the girls. He has that habit ‒ emerging from nowhere.

Shuri’s words die on her lips.

“What are you up to?” Bucky asks, looking from Wanda and Shuri to Steve and Tony, slowly raising his eyebrows.

“The girls here are sneaking off to see Vision,” Tony says.

“Oh,” Bucky says, “Well, that won’t do. Wanda, you can’t go outside! What if you get caught? And Shuri, no sixteen-year-old girl should be outside at this hour!”

“I’m a princess!” Shuri insists, but she’s smiling.

“Yeah, well, T’Challa would murder us all if we endangered you and let you smuggle Wanda out. Come on, back to your room,” Bucky answers her.

“What are you going to do about it?” Shuri says, crossing her arms.

Bucky hauls her on his shoulder. Shuri lets out a surprised squeal that turns into laughter. Bucky starts to walk away, taking her with him. Before following them, Wanda lays one last glance at Tony.

“Tomorrow,” Tony promises, nodding at her.

“That was…” Steve chuckles when they’re gone, shaking his head fondly.

“Yeah,” Tony smirks. He hasn’t let go of Steve’s hand. Leaning forward, he gives Steve a chaste and unsure kiss, which Steve returns eagerly.

“Do you think we beat Vision and Wanda in the weirdest couple competition?” Tony laughs as their part.

Steve takes Tony’s face in his hands, smiles at him softly. The wondrous look in Tony’s eyes is beautiful. “We aren’t weird,” Steve says, “We’re just meant to be, sweetheart.”

Tony leans forward, placing his head on Steve’s shoulder. He plays with Steve’s fingers. They can hear Shuri’s laugh echoing somewhere from the house. The end credits of the movie roll on the TV.

It’s late, and Steve is weary.

“You’re welcome to join me in my bed tonight,” Steve whispers to Tony, putting an arm around him, pulling him as close as possible.

Tony hums, “Yes, but my bed is bigger.”

**Author's Note:**

> [playlist](https://open.spotify.com/user/jj-jamie/playlist/19cGxDOxNnTa8hbjNeCaaL?si=cZki5jd9SCuqNVTi7s94KQ)
> 
> [my tumblr](http://pattyuris.tumblr.com)


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